As we look ahead to end of national restrictions and measures to help contain the Covid pandemic, what have we learned about our own city?

Recent research published as part of the Everyday Integration project analyses input from nearly 800 people living in and around Bristol to start finding out.

“The pandemic has upturned many of our assumptions about the relationships between integration, work, neighbourhoods and engagement. In one version of an integrated society, we would all be in this together … but we have seen how profoundly unintegrated we are with the disproportionate impact of the pandemic across lines of age, ethnicity, precarity, immigration status and social class.”

Focusing on economic, social, civic, mobility and digital perspectives, the Whose Bristol survey found:

1. a lower rate of negative economic impact than nationally, but a widening of existing inequalities;
2. a strengthening of national attachments among some groups (non-citizens and ethnic minorities);
3. a shift of civic engagement from national to local participation, and a high level of reported voting intentions for future elections - though this wasn’t realised in Bristol’s recent low turnout;
4. an increase in physical mobility among lower-income groups, with higher associated health and occupational risks compared to more affluent groups;
5. greater online activity among female respondents than male, and a slight overall narrowing of pre-pandemic digital divides.

The implications of these findings, and potential initiatives to support integration and inclusion through everyday interactions, will be explored in a series of community workshops after the summer. Please contact us if you’re interested in contributing or finding out more.